8+ last minute Mother’s Day gift ideas

It’s crunch time! This Sunday, May 11 is Mother’s Day, and if you’re anything like me you had lots of creative Mother’s Day gift ideas last June but completely forgot about them until right now. While I’m a mother and Mother’s Day technically should be a celebration of my incredible mom talents – like making lunch for two kids while unloading groceries, holding a cranky toddler, and singing the ABCs – it just isn’t.

Mother’s Day is about my kids doing something special for their grandmother and about all of us going out to eat somewhere together. I also usually get flowers from my husband and a present from the kids, but to be honest it’s not really my cup of tea. I’m celebrated every day with the kisses my kids give me and the words of praise my husband gives me. I don’t need a gift or card or a special day.

Some people do, though, and it would feel weird to celebrate Mother’s Day without giving my mother-in-law a gift from my kids. Here are a few of my favorite homemade gift ideas that don’t require too much planning or time:

– Paint your kids’ feet and have them step on an inexpensive canvas. Write the year and each of their names below their footprints. DONE.
– Print a favorite photo of your kids and frame it in an inexpensive frame. To make it extra special, write a little message on the back of the photo that the receiver might not find until years later. DONE.
– Have the kids paint an old wooden box with craft paint. Fill it with the gift receiver’s favorite snacks. DONE.

And for all you slackers who don’t have time for something homemade (um, would have been me had I not had today to do something handmade), here are some great, EASY last minute Mother’s Day gift ideas that you can run out and buy:

What are you giving for Mother’s Day this year? What are you asking for?

Sabrina, of RhodeyGirl Tests, had her first child in September 2011 with her husband Trig. At the time of this post her son was 2.5 years old and her daughter was a year old. You can read other related posts on her blog.

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I helped my kids make a large flower pot for my MIL. They did painted handprints on it that I turned into flowers, and added a couple baby feet butterflies and thumbprint ladybugs and bumble bees. We took a trip to the local nursery to let them pick out flowers to plant in it. We picked out nice hanging baskets for their great-grandmothers.

What I would really love is a cleaning service to come in and take care of some of the household chores. Someone to clean bathrooms, dust, and wash windows would be wonderful. We have three kids, age 5 and under. I am expecting our fourth this summer and I also babysit my friend’s two year old. My days are stretched a little thin most of the time. Having an extra set of hands to do household chores that sometimes don’t get done as often as I would like would be a huge relief. What I got was the iPad I am typing this up on right now 🙂 my husband is a computer programmer, and while he really does mean well and I do appreciate and like the gift he just doesn’t “get” it. I would never ask for the service though, or indicate anything other than extreme happiness with anything he or the kids gets me.